Okay I figure I would start generating a discussion since the Blazers board has been pretty dead recently. I figure what better topic then the Draft seeing as how it is almost near. So pretty simple question who is high on your draft board from where we are picking (probably about 6-10). We may even land out of the top 10 who knows. Anyway I am pretty high on Jeff Green, Julian Wright I think could be good, Corey Brewer (to an extent), of course Durant and Oden, but I think they are pretty much out of reach for us. From where we could end up drafting, I would love to see us get Jeff Green, he's a great passer and pretty good shooter, however, he needs to learn to be more selfish IMO. Okay, your turn.
Assuming that the Blazers don't get a top three pick, then I think they should make a run at Nicolas Batum, the french wing who recently had a big showing at the Nike Hoops Summit against some of America's elite high school prospects like O.J. Mayo and Kyle Singler. I was at the game, and from what I saw, he was definitely the most impressive player on the court. From start to finish, he dominated the game when he was in it. Had he not had foul trouble early on, he probably would have wound up with closer to 30-40 points than the game-high 23 he actually wound up with. He didn't look that much different of a prospect than Kevin Durant, not necessarily as talented but a player in the same mold none the less. He seems like just what the Blazers need on the wing.
<div class="quote_poster">Voodoo Child Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Assuming that the Blazers don't get a top three pick, then I think they should make a run at Nicolas Batum, the french wing who recently had a big showing at the Nike Hoops Summit against some of America's elite high school prospects like O.J. Mayo and Kyle Singler. I was at the game, and from what I saw, he was definitely the most impressive player on the court. From start to finish, he dominated the game when he was in it. Had he not had foul trouble early on, he probably would have wound up with closer to 30-40 points than the game-high 23 he actually wound up with. He didn't look that much different of a prospect than Kevin Durant, not necessarily as talented but a player in the same mold none the less. He seems like just what the Blazers need on the wing.</div> I haven't heard much about him until some Blazers fans mentioned him a little today. I also hadn't previously seen him in the top 10 on NBA Draft.net until today. Although, after hearing a little bit about him from you, he seems to be someone that the Blazers could really use. I'm figuring were going to be in the 7-10 range so of course if Jeff Green isn't gone by our pick I would like to see the Blazers draft him, but Batum seems like an interesitng prospect.
<div class="quote_poster">The_Future Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I haven't heard much about him until some Blazers fans mentioned him a little today. I also hadn't previously seen him in the top 10 on NBA Draft.net until today. Although, after hearing a little bit about him from you, he seems to be someone that the Blazers could really use. I'm figuring were going to be in the 7-10 range so of course if Jeff Green isn't gone by our pick I would like to see the Blazers draft him, but Batum seems like an interesitng prospect.</div> Yeah, from what I understand, he wasn't expected to put his name in the draft until recently, and it wasn't until the Hoops Summit this past weekend that a lot of teams got to really see him play, because his international team gives the kid almost no playing time whatsoever. Jeff Green makes sense too though, like you're saying. Him and Batum will play the same position in the pro's, but as of now, Green is coming off a season where he was Georgetown's four and Batum is coming off a season where he played combo guard, so they'll both intially be bringing a different mentality to the position. One of the things that I love about Green is how efficient he is, similarly to Brandon Roy, the comparison that's been really trendy amongst draft analysts lately. He's just very fundamentally sound and well-rounded. For example, look at the way he blocks. Unlike guys like Oden, Thabeet, and all the draft's other big-time shotblockers, Green doesn't block shots with power and doesn't put on a show every time he swats one away. Rather, in a very Bill Russell-esque fashion, he goes right up and simply bats the ball to the floor so he can retain the possession. It's the little things like that which make him a special player. Not many players play that smart these days. They're all about the stats and the highlights, not Green though.
<div class="quote_poster">Voodoo Child Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Yeah, from what I understand, he wasn't expected to put his name in the draft until recently, and it wasn't until the Hoops Summit this past weekend that a lot of teams got to really see him play, because his international team gives the kid almost no playing time whatsoever. Jeff Green makes sense too though, like you're saying. Him and Batum will play the same position in the pro's, but as of now, Green is coming off a season where he was Georgetown's four and Batum is coming off a season where he played combo guard, so they'll both intially be bringing a different mentality to the position. One of the things that I love about Green is how efficient he is, similarly to Brandon Roy, the comparison that's been really trendy amongst draft analysts lately. He's just very fundamentally sound and well-rounded. For example, look at the way he blocks. Unlike guys like Oden, Thabeet, and all the draft's other big-time shotblockers, Green doesn't block shots with power and doesn't put on a show every time he swats one away. Rather, in a very Bill Russell-esque fashion, he goes right up and simply bats the ball to the floor so he can retain the possession. It's the little things like that which make him a special player. Not many players play that smart these days. They're all about the stats and the highlights, not Green though.</div> Jeff Green could be that missing piece for the Portland Trail Blazers next year and that's why he is the highest on my draft board (barring some crazy lottery fluke where we end up top 3). When I saw Jeff Green play in the tournament that's exactly who he kind of reminded me of was Brandon Roy (a taller version of Roy), he has great court vision and has a pretty good jump shot. Also, like you mentioned Green is not looking for the stats which is good to an extent. One knock against him is that he is way too passive and because of that he was non-existent against Ohio State which they despratley could of used him. IMO he should look for his shot more often. All in all, he is a smart player and can perform at the next level I believe. Hopefully he falls past Seattle if Seattle picks ahead of us because I think they will be going SF with Lewis most likely gone.
